SOLVED: SFC asks for SP3 on your Dell

SFC checks your existing files to make sure they are the original Microsoft versions. However, since most people will have now installed Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3), you may run into a problem when either the Windows XP installation or recovery CD/DVD, or the I386 folder on your machine (e.g. Dell sticks it on c:\I386) are the SP2 versions. The root cause is that SFC will not copy older service pack files over newer service pack versions.


My Dell has an C:\I386 folder and the solution was to go and get the Windows XP Service Pack 3 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals and Developers so that I could slipstream the existing I386 assemblies with the SP3 ones. If you do not have an I386 folder then put your Dell Recovery CD in the drive and Explore it. copy the I386 folder and all its contents to your C:\ drive.

• Download the file to your C:\ drive.
• Rename the file to XPSP3.exe
• Win + R, or Start -> Run and type: XPSP3.exe -u -s:c:\

This will now extract and slipstream your I386 folder.

Now when you run SFC your machine should pick up the correct files and stop complaining. If you machine appears to be looking for the files from a CD/DVD drive then you can change the source path to your I386 folder using the Registry Editor:

• HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup\
• Set SourcePath as C:\

Good luck